The paper quotes a new report from consulting firm Booz & Company that says the countries will be in the “almost contradictory position of having to import gas, when they have exported gas for decades.”

“Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are facing a reversal of a decades-old status quo: an increasing gas shortage in the region amid a significant supply overhang in the rest of the world,” says the report. “Although the global economic slump has reduced the need for gas in most regions, demand in the Gulf Co-operation Council [GCC] for power generation from some industrial sectors has far outpaced the region’s gas exploration and production. As a result, GCC countries find themselves in an uncharted territory.”

According to the report, though importing gas to countries that boast up to 23 percent of global gas reserves seems counter-intuitive, the rapidly rising demand means that most of the GCC countries will have to consider it. Only Qatar has the capacity to meet demand, apparently.